Michael Williams, FBA (1935–2009) was a Welsh historical geographer, known particularly for his work on deforestation. His book, "Deforesting the earth: from pre-history to global crisis" is the most comprehensive account ever written of when, where, and how humans have wrought what is surely the most dramatic change in Earth's surface since the end of the Pleistocene...about every aspect of human use of the forest and the forces that drive this use. [1] He had a personal chair at the University of Oxford from 1996.[2]